The Lyric Theatre

The Lyric Theatre in downtown Tupelo opened in 1912 as the Comus Theatre. On April 5, 1936, a tornado destroyed much of Tupelo and the theater was used as a makeshift hospital and morgue for the injured and the dead. It is said to be haunted year-round by a spirit nicknamed Antoine, whose identity is unclear. Staff and volunteers describe hidden keys, slamming doors, popcorn machines turning on, and the sound of metal medical instruments. The Tupelo Community Theatre rescued the building from demolition in the 1980s and continues to restore it, and the theater was named among the most haunted theaters in America in 2001.